TV queen Nakazibwe dares Hajj Kigongo; Leave me alone!

TV queen Nakazibwe dares Hajj Kigongo; Leave me alone!

Faridah Nakazibwe with newly wed husband Dr. Omar Ssali at their reception at the prestigious Radison Hotel in Dubai recently

I choose to treat my involvement with Hajj as a mistake, adds Nakazibwe

Former NTV news anchor Faridah Nakazibwe has released a stinker to her estranged former lover and powerful NRM Vice Chairman Al-Hajj Moses Kigongo warning him to stop harassing her newly wed husband Dr. Omar Ssali who lives and works in Qatar.

I a statement released to the media Nakazibwe is for the first time confirming that their new love life with Dr. Omar is suffering from threats allegedly sponsored by Hajj Kigongo.

“Hajji Kigongo knows exactly what went wrong and that is why he cannot call me directly but continues to call my husband, and the rest is history. We were moving on well until tabloids found out about the affair and published his private mobile number in addition to irresponsibly publishing nonsense after nonsense.

In an courageous way Nakazibwe has told off Hajj Kigongo saying: “[Hajji Kigongo], please leave me alone. I do not owe you anything; even the back of your head knows it.”Below is Faridah’s full statement

With a lot of respect and patience, I speak out. If it is not ego, I still don’t understand why a respectable leader of [National Resistance Movement Vice Chairman] Hajji Musa Kigongo’s stature could still torment a young couple, trying to settle down.

When the big man approached me, I listened. He sounded mature and I gave him the benefit of doubt, hoping that it would work out. Eventually, I realised that he wanted a wife but was reluctant to marry [one]. I also realised he wanted to use me to get back at his estranged wife [Uganda National Chamber of Commerce boss, Olive Kigongo] and my leaving him meant embarrassment on his part.

It was a relationship that lasted close to six months and the major reasons for its breakdown bordered more on character. How he treated a partner with whom he had spent over 25 years and raised children with shocked me, to say the least, especially when he asked her out of their house [in Kololo] and seriously wanted me to [move into] it.

When he shamelessly asked his wife to prove to court that they were officially married, I thought twice; if he could do that to the mother of his children, I did not know what shocker he would have for me. That is the major reason I cut that tie. That, and a few others.

We talked; I communicated my fears and informed him I did not want to push on because I realised it was a big shoe I innocently tried to fit in. I gladly handed over his only property I had – a Land Cruiser Prado UAV 305K. I dare Hajji Kigongo to sincerely come out and prove to the world that he gave me anything else like a house or huge sums of money like it is alleged. I dare him.

For, a man who chases the mother of his kids out of a house to bring in another; a man who asks back a gift, surely cannot give out much generously. That I can say again.

Hajji Kigongo knows exactly what went wrong and that is why he cannot call me directly but continues to call my husband, [Dr Omar Ssali] threatening him. I met Omar a few months after I left the loaded Hajji, and the rest is history. We were moving on well until tabloids found out about the affair and published his private mobile number in addition to irresponsibly publishing nonsense after nonsense.

I took on the publishers in courts of law and that battle is still on. I have audio proof that the big man Kigongo has been calling and threatening Omar. It is out of respect for Hajji’s position in society that I chose not to counter the malicious allegations in the hope that the storm would calm down.

Despite all that, Omar and I pushed on and finally we decided to formalise our relationship recently, hoping that [hajji], who is already married by the way, can let us be. The tension and threats intensified as we drew closer to our kwanjula. We were being trailed daily and on two occasions, Omar was attacked and beaten up by goons.

We have three files at police for harassment and we are yet to get help. Elders tried to intervene but the big Hajji only said I belong to him. To avoid eventualities, both our families agreed to halt the traditional wedding.

Messages of cancellation were sent out to our invited guests on time and thankfully none of them cluelessly showed up at the venue [in Masaka] on the previously set date.

That is how we opted for a Nikah out of town, to cut the attention and tension. The Nikah [in Dubai] was conducted by Sheikh Muhammad Luggya, the Imam of Hamad bin Sultan masjid in Al Hamriyah.

It was witnessed by very few friends, family and leaders of the mosque with whom we shared a meal later at the Radisson Hotel. I was shocked to learn three days later from the presiding sheikh that someone from Uganda called, blaming him for wedding a married woman.

I dare Hajji Kigongo through pictorial evidence or any document to prove that I am in any way married to him. It has been a long fight we have kept under wraps, hoping that hajji will move on since he is married, like it is alleged.

I do not regret involving myself with such a person; I choose to treat it as a mistake from which I have picked a lesson or two.

[Hajji Kigongo], please leave me alone. I do not owe you anything; even the back of your head knows it.

Brief Analysis

By taking their affair with Hajj Kigongo, into the media and public spotlight, Nakazibwe may have sought to insulate herself from any possible hostile attacks similar to those visited on her lover Dr. Ssali. But it is also a risky strategy considering that Hajj Kigongo maintains a feared reputation among media organizations and has made it clear to many snoops that his life is no fodder for gossip. Whether or not Nakazibwe will defy this, remains to be seen.